


Notes

by Hellokaelyn



Series: Fictober 2019 [10]
Category: NCIS
Genre: F/M, Fictober, slightly AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-11
Updated: 2019-10-11
Packaged: 2020-12-07 22:55:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20983748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hellokaelyn/pseuds/Hellokaelyn
Summary: Ellie feels and makes a connection with Agent Torres, a valuable agent in danger that Vance tasked them to find.





	Notes

**Author's Note:**

> AU on how Nick comes into the picture. Takes place in s16 timeline without any s16 events having taken place.
> 
> Prompt: "Listen, I can't explain it, you'll have to trust me."

**Navy Yard, Squad Room**  
  
Ellie was doing something she hadn't done in a while.   
  
She sat on the floor behind her desk, chair pushed in, laptop on the floor in front of her, papers scattered about around her, and empty bags of cheese puffs thrown behind her. She had hoped the cheesy particles would have helped like they have before, but nothing.  
  
Her eyes glanced down to her left where his photo lay.  
  
Nicholas Torres.   
  
Agent Torres.  
  
Weeks ago Vance had called them into his office with the task of finding him. Agent Torres an undercover agent for NCIS for the last ten years and the best they had, had gone on the run once he realized he'd been compromised during a case involving one of the most dangerous crime families in the area. Vance wanted Torres found for many reasons. For his safety, because he was the best undercover agent they had, and the fact Torres knew a lot of sensitive information and it was a worry of what he might tell if found and tortured.   
  
For some reason the thought sent a chill down her spine, one that felt different from the regular worry for another human being.  
  
They haven't had much luck.   
  
There had been plans made for how they'd inform Torres that they were trying to help him without compromising him any more, but they had to find him first.  
  
Ellie learned a lot in the weeks they had been searching for him, in an attempt to get a profile and any information that could be used to help them track him down, she along with Kasie and Jack had dug.   
  
Torres and his family had moved to Florida when he was five, soon after that his dad left, his mom worked two jobs to support him and his older sister Lucia, he got into a lot of fights in school over the years that simmered out when he joined the soccer team in high school, he spent a lot of his senior year and the next year visiting his best friend Sofia who was in and out of the hospital for cancer, Lucia got married and had a baby making him an uncle, Sofia passed away, and that led Torres down the road to being the undercover agent he is.   
  
And that was only surface things she learned. There was a lot to know about him, and Ellie found herself intrigued by this man who was almost constantly undercover. She found herself wondering what he was like in person and not just on paper.   
  
"Bishop!"   
  
She jumped, cheeks coloring pink when she realized she'd spaced out staring at his picture.  
  
Gibbs was at his desk grabbing his gun. "Come on we got a body."  
  
Her heart jumped into her throat as she quickly shoved the papers back into their files. "Is it-?"  
  
"One of the Santos family."   
  
Ellie felt bad for the small curl of excitement that formed in her stomach. They finally had something.

* * *

  
  
**Alexandria, VA**  
  
It was evident that there was a fight from the second they stepped inside the house.  
  
Ellie though, didn't look at the body long. She seen enough of it to know the man they ID'd as Reinaldo Santos got beat pretty bad, and eventually fell on the coffee table where a shard of glass pierced through and killed him.   
  
They all knew the one who got out alive was Torres, but none of them voiced it especially with Metro lingering as they were called to the scene first. Ellie motioned towards checking out the rest of the house within minutes of them arriving, the Metro detective who stuck around only making her irritation rise as he rambled about how brutal the attacker had been.  
  
Ellie didn't think of Torres as _innocent_, but she knew he was in survival mode and could she really fault him for being so aggressive towards the people trying to either kill him or take him in alive for information? No, she couldn't. She knew he was dangerous, knew the snippets of the Torres she heard from his sister probably didn't exist anymore after years of undercover..but Ellie just wanted to find him, to help.   
  
(A part of her realized maybe this was her trying to redeem herself for the guilt she still feels for not being able to save Qasim, for not taking out Chen until it was too little too late)  
  
It didn't take her long to go through the entire house, leaving only the small library left.   
  
Ellie entered the room slowly, and she knew someone would dismiss it quickly as it looked like any normal library someone had in their house. Bookcases against the walls with a majority of the space filled with books, and a little dust starting to gather as a lot of the books obviously weren't read.   
  
But Ellie wasn't just anyone.   
  
She walked along the bookcases, gloved fingers dragging along the spines as she read them. She had just passed one of the books when she stopped. Ellie stepped back, and slowly pulled the book out along the edge of the bookcase where dust was disturbed.  
  
_Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban._  
  
Going with her gut, she flipped through the book until she reached chapter nineteen. And there at the beginning of the chapter, the one where they find out Sirius Black is innocent, was a piece of paper. Placing the book down, Ellie opened the slip of paper.  
  
_I did my own research Bishop. These books are really your favorite? Nerd much?_   
  
She gaped at the paper. It was from him, it had to be. And not only did he somehow research her, but he was making fun of her in a damn _note_ while his life was in _danger_? Ellie huffed, slipped the note into an evidence bag, and stomped into the living room where thankfully Metro was gone from.  
  
"I have something." She grumbled, shoving the note in McGee's face who flinched away and gave her a 'what the hell?' look.   
  
He coughed to cover a laugh when he read it. Ellie glared as Gibbs took the paper to read himself. She felt her eye twitch in annoyance when she noticed a corner of Gibbs' mouth turn upwards for a quick second.   
  
"Take this to Kasie along with everything else." Gibbs told her. "No time to waste."

* * *

  
  
**Navy Yard, Kasie's Lab**  
  
For the first two hours in the lab there was silence. Ellie sat at the table inspecting the note after testing it in every way possible while Kasie ran tests and inspected every other piece of evidence. To anyone else it would seem as if they were trying to solve the murder of Reinaldo, but really they were looking for any evidence that'd lead them to Torres.   
  
He was a fellow agent, and they wouldn't let him down. Not when they just recently lost Reeves, almost lost Abby, had Alex leave, Qasim, Tony leaving which felt like a loss, Ziva before him- the list went on and on.   
  
"How are you even sure he left anything in that note?" Kasie asked, leaning against her computer table facing Ellie waiting for her own results.   
  
"Listen, I can't explain it, you'll have to trust me."  
  
"Oh I do." Kasie raised an eyebrow. "I just want you to be sure you're not looking into something that might not be there."  
  
"There is, Torres wouldn't have just left me a note to mock me."  
  
"Well..from what we heard, he can be pretty cocky-"  
  
Ellie suddenly gasped. "Hold that thought!"  
  
"What do you got?" Kasie asked, a bounce in her step as she came over, hands resting on the table.   
  
"The capital T in 'these' and the N in 'nerd'..do they look weird to you?" Ellie asked, handing Kasie the magnifying glass she was using.  
  
Kasie squinted and furrowed her eyebrows. "No..doesn't look any different to me."   
  
Ellie frantically grabbed for her bag and yanked out a file, a file filled with case notes from some of Torres' past cases courtesy of Vance. She practically slammed it on the table as she flipped it open, slipping out one of the case notes and sliding the note on top of it. "Look!"  
  
"Ellie..what am I supposed to be looking at? We already know it's his handwriting-"  
  
"The T and N! It's not what his normal capital T and N's look like!"   
  
Kasie pulled back, staring at Ellie with an odd look. "Oookay.." She said slowly. "I wasn't worried before but now I think I am."  
  
"What?" Ellie looked at her confused, her mind only half focusing on what Kasie was saying. "What I'm saying is..he wrote those two letters different for a reason!"  
  
Quickly pulling out her laptop, she went right into the database they had of every Santos family member on a hunch, and entered T and N into the key search.   
  
_Tristan_  
_Tobin_  
_Terrence_   
  
Only Terrence lived in the area.   
  
Ellie jumped from her seat while gathering her laptop and file. "Thanks Kasie!" She shouted as she ran out the door.  
  
Kasie behind her lifted her hand in a wave with a confused look. "Uh..you're welcome?"

* * *

  
  
**Fairfax, VA**  
  
In a matter of an hour they had Terrence Santos in interrogation, and a warrant to search his place thanks to the on call judge they had for this case as some of the information Torres knew was sensitive. Ellie knew a lot of the help they were getting was just to cover their own asses should what he knew to get out, and not for the concern for his safety, but she'd try and forget that because it meant they would find him faster.  
  
Gibbs was interrogating him with the assistance of Jack, McGee was in the bedroom, and Ellie- she was looking for books or a certain book she knew this guy had to have. He obviously wasn't a book person, but Ellie had noticed a picture of a little girl she guessed was his daughter he had joint custody of, which meant-  
  
She grinned when she opened one of the cabinets in the large TV stand to find children's books, and right at the end was a Harry Potter book with a worn out spine. Ellie grabbed for it and flipped through it.   
  
Nestled right in chapter six, where Harry meets Ron and gets his first real friend, was another note.  
  
_You really are a nerd, aren't you? As fun as this is, I have a serious question. Are you a natural blonde? I always had a secret thing for blondes._  
  
Ellie felt her cheeks heat, trying to ignore his hitting on her through a damn note while he was in danger. A deja vu feeling filled her. This man was something else. Instead, she shook it off (or tried to) and looked carefully at the note.  
  
This time it was the two A's.  
  
And just like she thought, she got an earful of teasing from everyone but Gibbs and Vance when they saw the note.

* * *

  
  
Another two weeks went by and the notes continued. It took them a little to realize it, but Torres was leading them straight to Dimitri Santos, the head of the family and ringleader.   
  
Each note had Ellie either smiling, blushing, or causing a pit of worry in the middle of her stomach when she read it.   
  
Chapter sixteen where Dumbledore's Army formed. _I bet you've read these books millions of times, is Snape always such an ass? My kind of dude. By the way you know, you should wear blue more often._  
  
Chapter seven where Malfoy called Hermione a Mudblood. _You were like a mini Hermione when you were younger, weren't you? Calling it now! Time is running short Bishop and there's only so much longer I can run from all of them._  
  
Chapter thirty-two when Cedric dies._ Can I call you Ellie? Well, I'll do it anyway. Not to sound like a creep (who am I kidding I never sound like a creep) but one of the things I'm looking forward to is meeting you face to face. There's something about you I can't put my finger on._   
  
Chapter thirty-three where Harry finds out the truth about Snape. _All of us have secrets, some we bury so deep that they leave scars behind. I have a lot of scars Ellie, some from secrets and some on the surface. Maybe one day I'll tell you the story of them all._  
  
Chapter twenty-seven, Dumbledore's death. _This will be my last message to you. Honestly I was prepared to do more but your team is pretty damn good, though I know they couldn't have done it without you. I'd ask if you have some freaky voodoo powers..but let's not go there. See you soon, Ellie._

* * *

  
  
**Navy Yard, Squad Room**  
  
Ellie gaped at a rushing Gibbs and McGee who were grabbing their guns and gear about to rush towards the elevator.   
  
"What?!" She shouted. "What do you mean I'm not going?!"  
  
"Exactly that Bishop." Gibbs stopped in front of her. "You're too close to this, and you know it."  
  
"Too close- I never even met the guy Gibbs!"  
  
"You don't have to meet someone to be too close." Gibbs narrowed his eyes in a glare. "It's an order, Bishop. Stay here."  
  
"But you're down an agent without me there!" She threw her hands up in frustration.   
  
"We have back up." Gibbs turned and pointed to behind her. "Besides, we have Jack."  
  
Ellie spun around to see Jack giving her a small apologetic smile as she moved past her to follow them. "Jack?!"   
  
"Stay put, Agent Bishop."  
  
Biting back a groan, she turned to Vance who had just walked up. "But-"  
  
"That's an order. From Gibbs and myself, we can't take any chances. We've been trying to get Dimitri Santos for years, we're too close now to make any mistakes." Vance told her sternly, giving her a nod before going back towards the stairs.  
  
Ellie finally let out that groan as she dropped into her chair, dropping her head onto the desk.   
  
She knew they were right, but she hated it.  
  
Hours seemed to pass by. Outside the sky grew dark, casting shadows on the bright orange walls but still she stayed. When finally, she got a text from McGee saying they got Dimitri and all the others, she relaxed a bit. But he never said anything about Torres..and so her pacing the length of the squad room began.   
  
She had just turned her back towards the elevators once more when they opened.   
  
"Well well-"  
  
Ellie gasped, spinning around so quickly that she stumbled for a second.   
  
"If it isn't the nerd herself."  
  
She stood frozen on the spot. Torres stood between her and McGee's desk, grin in place. He slowly walked towards her and her mouth went dry as words died in her throat. He wasn't supposed to just appear here..she had no time to prepare-  
  
"You know..at this point people usually say something like 'hi'." He teased, still smiling at her.  
  
"I- Agent Torres what're you-"  
  
"Nick." He interrupted. "No Agent Torres or Torres..just Nick."  
  
"Nick." Ellie repeated with a smile, feeling herself relax slightly at _him_ being so relaxed  
  
"As for what I'm doing here..McGee and Gibbs are getting some last minute stuff settled at the scene, I caught a ride here from another agent."  
  
"Okay but..why here? I know your sister and niece would be happy to see you-"  
  
"This." He told her with a smirk, gesturing between them. "I told you I wanted to meet you, Ellie."  
  
A shiver went down her spine at hearing him say her name. She felt her face heat slightly when he stepped directly in front of her. "Why?"  
  
"Like I said..there's something about you." Nick grinned a small grin. "I'm also not the most patient guy ever, I didn't want to wait until tomorrow when I come in to meet with Vance.  
  
Ellie chuckled. "Well I..I'm glad you didn't."  
  
"Really?" Nick sent her a smirk.   
  
"Really, I wanted to meet you too."  
  
"And now that you have?" He asked in a low tone, taking a step closer until there was limited space between them.  
  
Ellie bit her lip, feeling a small thrill at the way his eyes glanced down. "I'd like to figure out more about who Nick Torres is."  
  
He smiled, eyes looking right into hers. "I think that can be arranged."  
  
"Tomorrow after your meeting?"  
  
"Or..we could start right now, I know of a great restaurant that's open until late."  
  
Ellie blinked at him. "But your family-"  
  
"Isn't expecting me until tomorrow. Besides, Amanda will kill me if I wake her up by visiting at this time."   
  
A smile formed on her lips. "Okay then..we can start right now."  
  
Ellie walked over and grabbed her bag, walking with Nick to the elevator. They walked close enough that their hands brushed with every step, and she forced back a smile and blushing cheeks when she felt him staring at her.   
  
She had no idea where this was going, but she had a good feeling about it.  
  


* * *

  
The next day she would find out Nick would be joining the team and filling out the empty desk.   
  
"Gibbs has rules." Ellie would tell him later when they grab dinner. "One of them is you can't date a coworker."  
  
Nick would smirk at her, leaning forward over their shared table. "I've never been one for rules Ellie, but who said anything about dating?"  
  
Ellie would gape at him before sputtering and stumbling over her words with red cheeks as she tried to backtrack, until Nick laughed and grabbed her hands in his, lacing their fingers together loosely on the table.   
  
"I'm kidding Ellie! I think we both know where this..thing between us is headed. But if you want me to back off 'cause of his rules-"  
  
"No!" She would then shout, a little too loudly as heads turn. "I just- want you to be sure."  
  
Nick then would throw her a wink along with running his thumb along her hand.   
  
Things then would grow from there..and if Ellie teased him about how he started to read Harry Potter, the what he deemed nerd books..well that was just an added bonus.   



End file.
